11.04.25, 19:00, Sam Comerford, Nils Vermeulen, Seppe Gebruers

comerford+flynn+dumoulin+ber

As artist-in-residence at Werkplaats Walter, Sam Comerford explores the borderland between avant-garde and improvisation, and the Irish folk tradition he grew up with. For this concert, he is writing new repertoire around the alienation of that tradition and bringing two worlds together: Belgian improvisers Jozef Dumoulin and Samuel Ber with Irish folk singer and flutist John Francis Flynn.

Comerford and Flynn once shared the same childhood in Dublin, as teenagers in the flute competitions of the Dublin Fleadh – both feeling somewhat out of place there. Yet today, Flynn is one of the most intriguing voices in folk music. He takes a unique approach to traditional Irish songs: he dissects, analyses and reconstructs them. Sam is organising this meeting precisely to bring together these radical visions of tradition, complemented by the distinctive musical characters of Ber and Dumoulin. Four days and one evening of dialogue at Walter.

Samuel Comerford is an artistic researcher affiliated with KASK & Conservatorium, the school of arts of HOGENT and Howest. The research project Radical Variations, Primitive Forms; the melodic language of Tommie Potts in improvised music was funded by the HOGENT Arts Research Fund.

Line-up

• Sam Comerford – saxophone, compositions
• John Francis Flynn – voice and flutes
• Jozef Dumoulin – keyboards
• Samuel Ber – drums

Joseph Nowell (release)

There is more new work in Joseph Nowell's universe. With the release of Themes and Variations, he explores how composition and improvisation can reinforce each other. Classical themes and variations form the starting point for short, often monothematic pieces, interspersed with free, melodic interludes. Live, this translates into uninterrupted sets that range from abstract intensity to hypnotic ostinati and lyrical expressiveness.

Perhaps the highlight of Walter's autumn programme when it comes to tradition, composition and improvisation. Five musicians, each on their own quest for sound, structure and expression. Each set has its own logic, its own surprises.

Line-up

• Joseph Nowell - piano

Practical

The doors of the new foyer open at 20:15. Concerts start promptly at 20:15. Evenings with two sets end no later than 22:30. This means that even those travelling by public transport can get home easily.

During Hatched!, the stage is an extension of the rehearsal room: not a finished concert, but a public testing ground where musicians experiment with new compositions, brand-new ideas or unusual line-ups. Not a casual jam session, but a controlled explosion – an open rehearsal space where sound, risk and the joy of playing come together.

Seppe Gebruers had planned to play in a duo with Chris Rainier, but failed visa plans threw a spanner in the works. No worries, the keyboard wizard went in search of another partner in crime. And they found him in none other than drummer Lander Gyselinck! One thing is certain: it will be the kind of evening that you will need to recover from afterwards.

Seppe Gebruers is a pianist, improviser and composer. He is known in the improvised music scene for his contributions to a wide range of adventurous projects, such as the large ensemble Ifa y Xangô, the piano duo with Erik Vermeulen, Bambi Pang Pang with the legendary Andrew Cyrille, the duo with Charlemagne Palestine, and the trio with Paul Lovens and Hugo Antunes. Over the past ten years, he has decided to play two pianos tuned in quarter tones, exploring microtonal music within improvisation. This concert brings Seppe Gebruers and Lander Gyselinck together with quarter-tone pianos and drums!

Lander Gyselinck is a drummer, composer and researcher. Known for STUFF., LABtrio, BeraadGeslagen and Lander & Adriaan, he moves freely between jazz, hip hop, electronica and experimental music. He is considered one of the most versatile musicians of his generation. Gyselinck obtained his doctorate at KASK & Conservatorium, where Seppe Gebruers is also defending his doctoral research. Both musicians approach music as an open research practice, in which experimentation, intuition and form consciousness challenge each other.

Hatched! is an initiative of NEST Talent Development in collaboration with Vol Pension and De Koer. With the support of the City of Ghent and Cultuur Gent.

Scottish musician Brìghde Chaimbeul proves that bagpipes are anything but dusty. With her deep roots in traditional folk music, she pushes the boundaries of the Scottish smallpipes by incorporating influences from avant-garde and electronic music. The bagpipes’ typical sustained notes cast a mesmerizing spell over the whole. 

As maximalist as his outfits (and his piano) are, the music of American multidisciplinary artist Charlemagne Palestine is minimalist, and he is anything but easy to pigeonhole. Seppe Gebruers also displays a certain contradiction. His two pianos are not tuned to the same pitch, but are slightly out of tune by a quarter tone. What is wrong, and what is right? How much space is there between the white and black keys of the keyboard? Everything you thought you knew about tuning is called into question.  

On Halloween Night, Art Cinema OFFoff pre­sents the Belgian avant-pre­mie­re of Hexham Heads, the expe­ri­men­tal hor­ror film by Chloë Delanghe and Mattijs Driesen.

Artistic researcher at KASK & Conservatorium Sam Comerford collaborated with Branwen Kavanagh on the film's music. They will give a performance before the film screening.

The film will be followed by a reception and a midnight, late-night Halloween movie that is still a secret!

Schedule

• 19:00 Concert
• 20:00 Hexham Heads
• 20:30 Receptie
• 22:00 surprise film*

*Ends ear­ly enough to catch the last trains back to Brussels or Antwerp!

Composer and saxophonist Sam Comerford presents a new suite of music composed for Irish violinist and viola player Ultan O'Brien and Belgian pianist Hendrik Lasure. Following the release of his acclaimed album ‘’Stillorgan‘’ with the trio Thunderblender in 2020, he turned to his background in Irish traditional music and has been working for several years to bring together the wild energy and madness of his homeland's music with the avant-garde language and conventions of jazz and improvised music. At Jazz in ‘t Park, these worlds merge to create a new one, featuring two of Comerford's closest collaborators.

Line-up: Sam Comerford (saxophone & composition), Ultan O'Brien (violin and viola) and Hendrik Lasure (piano)

Samuel Comerford is an artistic researcher at KASK & Conservatorium, the school of arts at HOGENT and Howest. The research project Radical variations, primitive forms: The melodic language of Tommie Potts in contemporary jazz was funded by HOGENT's Arts Research Fund.